When Inko eventually releases the fifteen year old from her smothering, the boy is more than ready to whip out his replacement phone from Giran and dial Tsukauchi like he'd meant to do all those hours ago. He's thankful to the broker for saving him, but a simple misclick had left him indebted to the man. And, even though Giran had told him otherwise, it's entirely possible that his identity had been revealed to who knows how many people at this point.
Midoriya is exhausted, his injuries throbbing and head pounding out a steady beat.
In his mind the maw pries itself open, roaring out his failures and shortcomings at a near deafening decimal. They reverberate inside his skull, tearing him apart in ways that he'll never become accustomed to.
Midoriya closes his bedroom door softly behind him, quietly leaning his back against it. Tears slip unbidden from his eyes, unable to be held back any longer now that he's found himself within the secluded confines of his room. Izuku's knees wobble and he lowers himself to the ground to prevent them from collapsing beneath him unwillingly.
The fifteen year old wants to ugly cry as he slides his new phone from Giran out, staring at the number pad through blurred eyes. His thumbs hovers over the numbers, searching for something that he won't find there.
I don't know Tsukauchi's number.
Midoriya's hand falls limply to the floor, phone held loosely between his fingers as a quiet sob bubbles it's way up from his throat.
The fifteen year old can't find it in himself to pull himself up and trek all the way to the older boy's apartment, not with his wounds the way they are, not with his mind fragmenting the way it is. Izuku's heart clenches painfully in his chest. Reo is the only one who knows of his secret, the only one he'd be able to cry in front of without people asking questions he'd never be able to answer truthfully.
He's almost tempted to slip down from their apartment's balcony and run the entire way there. But, his body knows before his mind does that he'd never be able to make the journey there.
Midoriya hauls himself up, grabbing onto any available furniture he can to help him stand before stumbling towards his bed and curling up in the sheets. The position aggravates his wounds, but past the signals of pain, a voice whispers quietly at the back of his mind that this is suitable punishment after tonight's unrivaled failure.
Izuku curls into himself further, crying silently into the dark until he falls unsolicited into unconsciousness.
For once Midoriya sleeps through his nightly patrol, mind and body completely shutting down until his school alarm signals the coming of a new day. His entire body feels like an overworked muscle, and his sun wavers in his chest like the last flickering flames of a dying star.
The hot water from his shower washes away most of the physical remnants of his nightmare ordeal.
But, there would never be water hot enough to erase the mental scars the night before had carved into him.
Midoriya looks down at himself, searching for wounds that no longer exists.
"Are you okay?"
"You're not hurt, are you?"
"T-That must've been scary right?"
"I need to protect you, okay? I need you to go hide."
Izuku clenches his hands, just barely restraining himself from slamming the side of the fist he makes into the bathroom wall.
These were the hands that had failed to save her, that had failed to grasp those thin fingers that had reached out to him so desperately, yearning to be saved. So desperate and yet not so much so that she wouldn't leave with her captor just to save him. He who was supposed to save being rescued by the one who needed rescuing.
More tears blur the edges of his vision. He's tired of crying. But, all he can do is cry more.
School drags on unbearably, the boy unable to see the point behind learning mathematics and history and science when there's a little girl out there being held captive. He can't stand being in this place, around these people. Their whispers are pointless, their worry insignificant when compared to the fear he had seen in Eri's vermilion eyes.
His gaze catches Bakugou's form from across the room, his own crimson eyes just barely visible from this angle. His feet are propped on his desk, brows drawn downwards in a scowl. But, for once it isn't burning disgust that he catches in the blonde's eyes, it's fear. Midoriya stares as the boy's hair turns white before his eyes, growing longer and slipping down his back like thin strands of spider silk.
The other teen turns to look at him, the mirage dissolve at the sneer that rises to the Bakugou's lips. "Deku." Izuku flinches back at the name, snapping out of his illusion. "The hell are you staring at broccoli brains?"
Midoriya's glances away, sinking further into his seat.
Indeed school was dragging on unbearably. As much as he'd slept last night he'd still woken up exhausted, plagued by half remembered nightmares of Eri's outreached hand. There's nothing more he wants to do at that moment than go home and sleep, but the burden weighing him down is a hefty one. And the only one who might be able to help relieve some of it should also be counting down the hours until school's out.
Midoriya scales the fire escape silently, his knock nearly inaudible to anyone who hadn't been waiting for the sound of it after the vigilante had stopped replying to any of the messages sent his way
Reo is up and out of his seat as soon as the noise registers, dragging the vigilante through his
window and engulfing him in a tight hug as soon as his shoes are off. "I thought you were dead! You weren't answering my texts!"
"I'm sorry," Midoriya mumbles uncomfortably into his shoulder, "Both of my phones kind of broke and I couldn't remember your number." The two step back from each other, falling into their usual spots, Izuku on the bed and Reo in his desk chair. "I would've come earlier, but..." Izuku finds it easier to lift his shirt and expose the unbadged wound.
Tsukauchi rolls his chair closer, studying it. The seventeen year old's eyes darken, finding Midoriya's downcast ones. "This wound should've healed a long time ago Midoriya."
The grip the younger boy has on his shirt tightens. "It did." The vigilante prepares himself for the mess of a story he's about tell. His heart already aching terribly before he's even said a word. "I ran into a little girl."
Tsukauchi listens to everything quietly, interjecting questions and exclamations when he feels it necessary. When Midoriya finally finishes talking his chest feels a little lighter. He'd told the detective some of what had happened the night before, but certainly not to the full extent of everything that he'd just told his nephew.
"So, who stitched your wound then? You said you passed out, was it some good Samaritan or something? It looks pretty surgical." Reo's eyes widen. "Did someone take you to a hospital?"
The younger boy sighs. "No, no hospitals. And, I don't know who did it, it was someone Giran brought in." Midoriya gently scratches at the back of his head. "Before I passed out I tried calling you. There were only two numbers on that phone, yours and Giran's, so I assume accidentally called him instead. Though I guess everything worked out for the best in the end. I don't know what you would've done. I don't think I even told Giran where I was, he had to get someone to track me."
Tsukauchi's eyes widen at all of the new information. "The creepy broker guy saved you?" Midoriya nods his head reluctantly, eyes distractedly roaming his friend's desk for new inventions.
Reo sighs, "I'm glad you're alright though. If we're being honest I probably would've ended up calling my uncle if I hadn't been able to find you." Midoriya sends him a slightly betrayed glance. "Don't look at me like that! I wouldn't let you die just to make sure your secret is safe. Not to mention you told me you weren't even in uniform! It's not like he would've recognized you as Piper... probably."
Izuku huffs a quiet laugh before his mood falls again, turning serious. "She's still out there." Reo offers the boy a comforting smile. "Leave it to my uncle, Midoriya. He'll find her."
But, the fifteen year old finds no comfort in the uptilt of the older boy's lips. "He wouldn't need to if I'd managed to save her."
Reo's smile drops into a frown. "There was nothing more you could've done." "There was."
"There wasn't," his friend insists, "You said so yourself. Midoriya you literally could've from blood loss."
"You don't understand Tsukauchi," Izuku's voice takes on a desperate tone, "She was right there!"
His voice cracks as he glances down at his hands, his fingers shaking underneath the weight of his failures.
"I do understand Midoriya," Reo soothes quietly, rolling his chair closer to the bed. "I understand that you tried your best. You fought that guy and when you couldn't beat him you called my uncle as soon as you could. There wasn't anything else you could've done aside from dying ."
More tears burn at the corners of his eyes because Reo doesn't understand. He doesn't feel the roaring of the tide swelling within the fifteen year old's chest. He doesn't feel how the waves press down on his lungs or his heart, he doesn't feel just how burdensome the weight of simply knowing that he could've done better, that he could've fought harder, fought smarter. He should've run the moment he'd seen that man coming, should've picked Eri up and rushed her to safety. But, instead he'd relied on himself, had relied on quirkless little Deku with too big of a heart and too small of a sense of self preservation.
And that is something Tsukauchi Reo would never understand.
The older boy lets him cry though, the fifteen year old's water works starting back up. He lets him run through his emotions and is there to comfort him. Comforting someone had never required a deeper sense of the situation, only a kind heart and a willing ear. And, that's what Tsukauchi offers Midoriya now.
Misaki peaks into the room at one point, the words she had come prepared to speak dying on her lips when she takes in the scene. She catches Reo's gaze when he turns his head to look back at her. The other boy's mass of green curls pressed into her son's chest.
There's a silent question that burns in her eyes, asking if there's anything she can do, but Reo gently shakes his head, turning her away.
He mouths an inaudible "he'll be fine" before she nods and quietly shuts the door again with the fifteen year old none the wiser of her appearance.
But, the silently spoken words rest uneasy on the seventeen year old's lips. Because, though neither of them would have been able to know it at the time, Midoriya would not be fine. Not until he'd saved that girl from whatever living nightmares she'd been afflicted with. Not until he'd rescued her, not until he'd redeemed himself.
Azametrizinthos reblogged Baby_Shark_du
SharkLords:
Hi everyone! So this may be a little weird, but me and a few of my friends all live in Musutafu's 5th district (you know the really bad one shdghdcj) and as some of you may know the vigilante Pied Piper has been running around helping over here for a long time now. And with me being in the area I've heard quite a few rumors about the guy (never actually met him, but that's not important). He's been asking around a lot about some Yakuza group (the 8 percents or something stupid like that???) Anyway, I've got a lot of followers on this account so idk??? If you guys have any information about them that could help I'll try and pass it onto the guy if I can
If you don't have any info then RBs are appreciated!
KirishiMom:
You mean the 8 Precepts of Death? I think they're the guys with those weird bird masks
I've seen a few running around the 4th district but I haven't really seen them doing anything shady???
falqner:
My brother used to be apart of the group until their old boss got sick and someone new took over
He won't tell me why he left just that "the new guy is a monster in human skin". After that he moved to Australia and refuses to talk about anything related to it...
gettingbi_kinda:
KirishiMom said it was people with bird masks, does that mean like those rubber pigeon ones?? Because I saw a dude running around downtown Musutafu in one of those with his junk out
Highly disturbing, but when I think about it's probably not the "move to Australia to get away from him" type
KirishiMom:
JAJSKAJSK I MEANT LIKE ARTISTIC LOOKING BEAK MASKS
I KNOW THIS IS SUPPOSED TO BE A SERIOUS POST BUT I'M ACTUALLY LAUGHING SO HARD LKSJBFGKLBDFS
Mirokus-Right-Thigh-Muscle:
I've seen some beak mask dudes hovering around this old building I pass on my way to work? I don't know if it's the same people but they certainly look sketchy
The building is in the 7th district over on the south side of Hasu park (the one with the dog park attached) It looks like regular old house, it's pretty small, pale blue, and it has a more westernised architecture.
SharkLords:
Uhhhhhhh this actually got a lot more attention than I thought it would, so if anyone actually meets Piper make sure you try and pass on any information shared in this thread!
Except maybe leave out the pigeon mask thing (—;)
#Piper has done a lot for the area so idk #ive been wanting to help him out and this is what I came up with #Pied Piper #vigilante #musutafu #help us track these assholes down #idk what they did but it got Piper's attention to its gotta be bad #8 precepts #bump
11,594 notes _
Midoriya rubs at his temples, taking a step back to look at the mess of information taped to the back of his closet wall. It'd been a month since he'd first encountered Eri, three months since he'd started his investigation into Kogane Gizō, and six months since the man had originally disappeared. And, despite how much time had passed, Izuku was no closer to finding either of them than when he'd started, most of the trails that he could've followed in the beginning having long since dissipated. There'd been no word from the detective either, no way for him to tell if they'd even opened an investigation after his call. Even Reo had been unable to give him any insight into what was happening.
"He complains about you getting away a lot, but other than that he doesn't really talk about work."
Midoriya curses, sliding his clothes back into place and slamming the closet door shut, thankful, for the first time, that Inko was out working late.
He paces the length of his room, wearing down a trail into the wood with his bare feet. The vigilante tugs at his curls in frustration. "Where are they! They didn't just disappear. People don't just disappear!" He wants to call someone to vent his frustrations to, someone who would understand. But, there's no one, no one who would understand, no one who would get it, no one who has felt the feelings he has boiling underneath his skin. They burn like acid, boil like tar. They pierce him like the crystals of Hojo Yu's quirk.
Because they'd pierced him, they'd gone right through his hand even if he didn't have the scars to show for it. He'd stared into the red eyes of a little girl who'd been privy to the sight of death and there was no way for him to prove it.
Since his first encounter with the girl he'd gone a vigilantism rampage, taking down villain after villain and asking all of them the same question, "What do you know about the Eight Precepts?" But, all the answers he got were just reiterations of the same thing. It's either "Who?" or "I don't know" or it's information he'd already heard long ago. Out of all of the work that he's doing, all of it, all of it ends up useless.
Sansa quickly pushes himself up from his seat, staring wide-eyed at Naomasa as he hurriedly throws his desk phone back on its receiver. "They brought that Lui guy in on a minor shoplifting charge."
The detective looks up, staring at the feline. The confusion is clear on his face until the name registers in his head and Tsukauchi quickly follows suit in pushing himself up. "Get him in an interrogation room as soon as possible. I need anything and everything he knows about Piper."
Naomasa watches from behind the interrogation room's two way mirror as Lui is dragged in by an officer. He's a thin, rail like man with a nose that looks more suited for a bear. His hair is coarse and his fingernails look more like the claws of an animal when he begins tapping them restlessly against the metallic table.
Sansa gives him an encouraging pat on the back. "Go get him Detective."
Tsukauchi makes his entrance casual, gently placing the manila folder in his hand on the table as he takes a seat.
Lui speaks first, "Why am I in here? I thought I was just in on a shoplifting case. Which," He exclaims, "is a false accusation. The shop owner an' I simply had a disagreement about the price of something. I didn't steal anything."
"I'm here to talk to you about the vigilante going by the name Pied Piper, Lui-san."
"Piper?" The man asks, suddenly looking confused. "Why are you asking me about him? I've never met the guy."
Noamasa frowns when his quirk doesn't register a lie. "Two months ago. We have footage of you picking him up off the sidewalk after a pretty brutal fight."
Lui's eyes narrow in further confusion before they snap open again, widening comically. "Wait, that kid was Piper? Like, the Piper ?"
The look Naomasa sends the man communicates a silent question.
A sheen of sweat forms above the man's brow. "If words gets out I helped him my business will tank!" Lui glances back up at the detective. "Which is a perfectly legal trade, might I add. But, I swear I didn't know it was him. I owed someone a favor and he called it in in two months back. My quirk gives me a really good sense of smell," he explains, awkwardly gesturing at his nose with his hands still cuffed to the table. "They guy called me and gave a general location to search and told me to follow the smell of blood and pick up whoever was at the end of it was. I dropped the kid off at his place and that was the last I saw of him. I ain't got nothing to do with Piper."
Tsukauchi lips twitch downward, "Who is guy you owed a favor to?"
Lui frowns. "I don't snitch on people Mr. Detective, so you won't be gettin' any names out of me."
Naomasa lets out an internal sigh, flipping the criminal's file open. "No names then, how about a description? Is he bald?"
Lui looks offended on the mystery man's behalf. "Hey, now. The dude's gettin' on in age, but he's certainly ain't bald."
So there was a possible fourth party involved? The detective sends a glance towards the two way mirror.
"What about Piper? I'm sure he's been caught infringing on your ' perfectly legal trade ' before. I'm sure you want him off the streets just as much as I do. Can you tell me what he looked like? Or what happened that night? Excluding anything about the man you owed a favor to of course."
Lui looks unsure, questioning whether those are questions that he's allowed to answer since by all accounts Piper should be his enemy. "It's been awhile, and my memory isn't too great you know."
Naomasas feels a bud of relief bloom in his chest. "Anything helps."
"Well," the man starts, voice still unsure, "Like I said I got that call. But, it was raining, so I was worried that I wouldn't be able to find him," he explains, "But, the stench of copper was really strong and I actually found him pretty quick. He was bleeding all over the place, though. It was all over his hands and soaking his shirt and his head was bleeding everywhere too, I thought he might've cracked his skull open or somethin'." Lui gestures vaguely towards his own forehead. "He had a mask on of course so I couldn't really see his face, and his eyes were closed with him being unconscious and all. He was young though, nothing but a teenager. I remember bein' surprised."
"What about his hair?" Naomasa prompts, desperate for any new information that they could get.
Lui makes to think about it. "Um, it was a dark color? It was dark and rainy so all his hair was laid flat from the water and stuff."
Tsukauchi curses internally. "What about what he was wearing? Did it have any symbols? Any logos? Did he have anything with him?"
"I don't remember, he was just wearing a plain looking t-shirt and some workout shorts. He had a backpack and some phones with him, but that was it, I dropped all of those off with him."
This was getting them nowhere, everything the man was telling him was stuff that they'd already heard before. I need to backtrack. "The guy you were talking about earlier, why did he want you to bring him Piper? Are they friends?"
Lui's eyes narrow, but he eventually shakes his head. "Him and Piper? That's nigh impossible. When I asked who he was when I dropped the kid off, do you know what he told me?" The man's eyes crinkle with amusement. "He called him a future investment," Lui lets out a laugh, "I can't wait to see how that turns out."
Naomasa steps out of the interrogation room, ten times as tired than when he'd first gone in. Interrogation rooms always seemed to suck the life out of him, especially when the topic of conversation inside happened to revolve around a certain vigilante.
They hadn't found out much, yet another lead leaving them at a dead end. The only information that they had gained was that the thin web of people connecting to Piper had grown a few more strings.
"Good work in there Tsukauchi-san." Sansa approaches him from the side. "You didn't send us any signals so I assume Lui-san didn't lie?"
"Not once," the detective confirms, waving for one of the officers standing guard outside the room to escort Lui away. "It was a little frustrating to be honest."
"This whole case is a little frustrating I'm afraid," Sansa inputs as they make a beeline for the break room. Tsukauchi was desperate for a boost from a pot of the department's terrible instant coffee.
"Piper has been gaining notoriety with the public since his encounter with Death Arms," the detective sighs, "And, that whole Endeavor encounter that happened a few months ago only made it worse."
The feline nods. "I'm worried the chief will have our heads if we don't handle this quickly," he murmurs as they pass by one of their superiors, giving the woman a brief nod of acknowledgment.
Naomasa makes a noise of agreement. "Not to mention how worried I am about Piper. From the way Lui was talking the kid could've died. I'm glad that he's at least got someone to patch him up, but the way that guy worded it, " future investment ". It's got me anxious."
Tamakawa nods in agreement. "Most of our leads are running dry, so we can only really hope for the best now. "
Tsukauchi lets out a long suffering sigh. "Yet another waiting game."